OverviewThe commercial production of ethanol fuel in Australia is the use of sugar cane and wheat using yeast in the fermentation process. Yeast is a fungus which can multiply in the absence of oxygen by using enzymes (e.g. zymase) to catalyse the decomposition of sugars. Those sugars are sucrose or maltose.

Suitable conditions
The conditions that promote the fermentation of sugar are:
* A suitable micro-organism such as yeast
* Water
* A suitable temperature for the fermenting yeast * Low oxygen concentrations favouring the fermenting yeast * A small amount of yeast nutrients such as phosphate salt. * Once the ethanol concentration reaches 14-15% by volume, the yeast cannot survive, and the fermentation process stops.

CostsBiomass fuels such as rice straw and sugar cane bagasse are being investigated as raw materials for ethanol production but the transportation costs are very high and do not justify their use. Genetically modified crops are being analysed and this could provide a cheap source of biomass fuels for the production of ethanol.

Production from Sugar CaneSucrose extracted from sugarcane accounts for little more than 30% of the chemical energy stored in the mature plant; 35% is in the leaves and stem tips, which are left in the fields during harvest, and 35% are in the fibrous material (bagasse) left over from pressing. Most of the industrial processing of sugarcane in Brazil is done through a very integrated production chain, allowing sugar production, industrial ethanol processing, and electricity generation from by-products. The typical steps for large scale production of sugar and ethanol include milling, electricity generation, fermentation, distillation of ethanol, and dehydration.

Replacement for distillationWith increasing attention being paid to saving energy, many methods have been proposed that avoid distillation altogether for dehydration. Of these methods, a third method has emerged and has been adopted by the majority of modern ethanol plants. This new process uses molecular sieves to remove water from fuel ethanol. In this process, ethanol vapour under pressure passes through a bed of molecular sieve beads. The bead's pores are sized to allow absorption of water while excluding ethanol. After a period of time, the bed is regenerated under vacuum or in the flow of inert atmosphere to remove the absorbed water. Two beds are used so that one is available to absorb water while the other is being regenerated. This dehydration technology can account for energy saving of 3,000 btus/gallon (840 kJ/l) compared to earlier azeotropic distillation.

Ethanol vs. Fuel Arguments for ethanol as a fuel| Arguments against ethanol as a fuel| It is a clean and efficient use of energy. It is much safer then petrol (Ethanol is biodegradable without harmful effects on the environment) and will greatly reduce the spread of pollution. Seeing that it is not a fossil-fuel, manufacturing it and burning it does not increase the greenhouse effect. * Ethanol can reduce net carbon dioxide emissions by up to 100% on a full life-cycle basis. High-level ethanol blends can reduce emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) by 30% or more (VOCs are major sources of ground-level ozone formation) * High-level ethanol blends reduce nitrogen oxide emissions| Ethanol is clean but it only produces two-thirds the energy of octane, hence more is needed| It is a much healthier alternative for people: * Sulphur dioxide and Particulate Matter (PM) emissions are significantly decreased with ethanol. * As an octane enhancer, ethanol can cut emissions of cancer-causing benzene and butadiene...

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...Today, renewable energy sources are commonly used to replace fossil fuels due to the lacking of oil, gas, etc. An alternative energy source is ethanol (C2H5OH). It is an alcohol fuel manufactured by fermentation and distillation of crops that are high with starch and sugar, such as grains, sugarcane (most commonly used), corn, and fruit. Other names for ethanol are ethyl alcohol, drinking alcohol, and grain alcohol. It can also be made from trees, grasses, woods, and plant waste. It is a colourless, flammable liquid that is categorized under bio-fuel. Brazil is the largest suppler and consumer of ethanol in the world. Ethanol functions in the same way as gasoline. In vehicles, it is blended with conventional gasoline to make gasohol (90% gasoline and 10% ethanol). It is clean-burning and consists of high energy.
The use of ethanol has brought lots of advantages to the society. A benefit of it is that it is renewable. It has a higher energy density than some other alternative fuels. This means that less volume is required to travel the same distance. Secondly, ethanol decreases the emissions of the toxic ozone-forming compounds. For example, tailpipe emission of carbon monoxide from vehicles can be reduced by preferring ethanol over gasoline. Since ethanol is made...

...Bio-ethanol is manufactured from fermenting starch, wheat and sugar cane. Ethanol is also made from the hydration of ethylene from petroleum, though the majority of ethanol is produced by fermentation. It is considered an alternative fuelsource as it is regarded to be renewable and more beneficial to the environment. As a car fuelethanol is blended with petrol in different concentrations.
In cars, carbon monoxide is produced from the incomplete combustion of petroleum. By adding ethanol which has 35% oxygen the combustion is more complete and there for reducing the amount of carbon monoxide. Within Australia, studies have shown that the effects of 10% ethanol have decreased the amount of carbon monoxide emissions.
In Brazil 10% of the energy used is provided from ethanol. In car fuel the mix of ethanol and petrol is about 85% ethanol with only about 15% petrol but in Australia fuels that contain ethanol are mainly about 10% ethanol and 90% petrol. Though a 85% ethanol blend has started being used in Australia but is not available at all petrol stations. As a car fuel it is blended with petrol to decrease how fast petrol burns, extend petrol reserves and to reduce green house gas emissions. For Brazil the use of...

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In this paper I will explore the use of ethanol as an alternative fuelsource. Ethanol is considered a renewable energy resource; as it is derived from crops such as: corn, sugarcane, beets, as well as, other organic materials. The use of ethanol could decrease our dependence on ever depleting supplies of fossil fuels; such as oil.
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